


Careless Whisper {B.H.}

by Gravitynfalls



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Drama, F/M, Fanfiction, First Meetings, Mystery, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-08
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:48:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,037
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27955670
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gravitynfalls/pseuds/Gravitynfalls
Summary: "It's Maristela.""What are you now a goddess or something?" Billy chuckled."A star, to be precise. It means "Star of the Sea".""Hm," Billy lighted a cigarette and corners of his lips slightly turned up. He seemed tired to her, maybe it was his eyes that were hidden under black sunglasses. Yes, definitely the eyes."Mars it is then," he simply said before turning around and heading to the exit.-This story is a bit different than in the tv series. In this one Billy has already graduated by the time he arrives to Hawkins, and works as a lifeguard at the pool.
Relationships: Billy Hargrove/Original Character(s), Billy Hargrove/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 6





	1. Mars and Other Planets

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, I hope you like the first chapter. I posted it on my wattpad too, check it out: nigarrmtvseries

It didn't take long for summer to show itself after the first hot day in July.

Mars looked out of the window only to find some people loudly talking to each other and hurrying to get back to their homes where they were awaited. A man standing near the curb didn't care much about the heating sun, he was focused on the road. _Waiting_.

"So hot.. Right when I was thinking about going for a jog." A young woman approached the desk Mars was sitting behind. Mars had gotten carried away with her thoughts, but seeing the woman, smiled to her and started helping her to pack the things she'd picked. _Refrigerator magnets, soaps, milk._

"It's officially summer I would say." Mars was working alone today in the store. Joyce asked for a day out to spend more time with her kids and Bob, and Donald only visited from time to time so Melvald's General Store had only one company - Maristela. It was a good day, mostly because of the sun. It calmed her and it also predicted that less people would come to the store, it only made her work easier. Not like the first time.

Joyce Byers was the one who persuaded Donald Melvald to employ a girl in Hawkins, Maristela Crawford who was looking for a summer job. At first Donald disagreed arguing that the girl would leave as soon as summer ends and they would have to look for a replacement. At least that's how Maristela's plan was going until that one day when she received a letter. She knew the letter wouldn't tell her good news and it made it much harder for her.

 _"We regret to inform you that after reviewing your application..."_ That's how the letter started and it was bad, she knew it. _"...we appreciate that you are interested in our university. Please do apply again next year."_ _Shit_. To get out of this shithole by getting accepted into the university in California - that was the plan. As much as she hated to admit it, it seemed the summer job was gonna turn into a permanent job, but to say that she didn't like her job, would be unfair towards her and others. She loved Joyce as her own mother and though the work was tiresome, it was essential one.

It was nearly the end of the day, she was ready to turn the lights off and close the store as soon as possible in order to get home. That's how simple it was, only she didn't know what was about to happen.

She clearly remembered how the last client left as the door behind him closed muffling the sound of the happy kids outside. But it only lasted a few seconds when the glass front door shut loudly accompanying by the voice of two strangers.

"I told you to fucking wait in the car!" The sound was so loud that Mars nearly hit her head while picking up her bag under the desk.

"Mom said I can choose myself!" A girl's voice replied as they headed towards the center aisle. Mars wanted to see who was talking but they only got more distant and she couldn't leave her desk.

The first voice mumbled something in reply. His voice was low, a bit vibrating. If Mars leaned over further the desk, she could've just fallen over it. As much as she tried to see the strangers, she gave up eventually and returned to her seat. All of a sudden she heard the voices were coming closer and looked up. The stranger was standing there comfortably looking at the lights, his appearance was screaming _danger_. That was only it, _danger_ , but what she didn't know was that something was about to happen that wouldn't have ended good.

The next thing she knew the loud tap of black boots echoed in the store as he approached the desk Mars was sitting behind. Looking at him, he looked just like many of his peers: jeans, a denim jacket, a brown bag, for some reason making her doubt that he carries around his textbooks or homework, a digital watch on his right hand.

He was tall, probably 7 inches taller than her. Heels under his boots helped him look even taller as he walked towards her. His unruly blonde hair perfectly framed his face, the soft curls fell in cinnamon swirls to his face slightly reaching his shoulders. It wasn't long though, part of his hair in front nearly reached his brows in soft messy waves. But still it managed to look completely natural as if he'd woken up like this.

The tops of his jeans held fast by a black leather belt. A pair of rings on his left hand didn't stay unnoticed, as well as a pack of Marlboro cigarettes stuffed into the left pocket of his jacket.

She couldn't see his eyes because of his black sunglasses, it added more confidence to his appearance which was apparently what he'd aimed for. She was scared of him, he just looked like the sort of person who would have asked you for a date and didn't show up. _Heartbreaker._

She noticed his silver hoop earring when he stood in front of the desk, his eyes under sunglasses met hers and focused on her for a brief moment before he put a pair of batteries, six pack of beer on the counter. The other stranger whom Mars noticed later appeared to be a school girl with ginger hair, she put the sweets next to other things.

Then, in a second, the tension in the store broke when he finally spoke to her.

"That will be all." He uttered and she was surprised how deep his voice was. If earlier she'd assumed he could be her age, now it seemed she could be pretty wrong. She couldn't recognise the accent, and they could, moreover, be new in this small town. What really puzzled her was the obvious tension between the redhead girl and the guy. _Siblings maybe, but they don't look alike._

Mars put down her bag and only nodded before starting to bag their items.

"That will be eleven-twenty one." Mars said, her voice slightly trembling. She didn't notice how he looked at her while putting money on the counter between them. She took it and opened the cash register beside her, the one that Joyce had opened many times, and started counting money to return the change.

The stranger looked at her, corners of his lips turned up, a glint in his eyes. "Keep the change." He said before taking the bag and going to the exit. The redhead girl annoyingly rolled her eyes and went after him.

Mars followed them with her gaze, she noticed how the stranger got in his '79 blue Camaro and lit his cigarette, the smoke dragged into the air and disappeared as he started the car moving over the highway, lights on full beam. _And a dangerous driver too._

It was time for Mars to close the store already, but first she wanted to clean up so that Joyce wouldn't get tired the next day. And it's not like she was keen on getting back home, every day seemed the same. She only had her friend and neighbour, Nancy Wheeler, and Rose Jagger, her friend from childhood. They tried to meet often as long as the work allowed, which meant only on weekends, but even then Mars would sometimes work long hours on weekend to make ends meet.

It was a boring job. Especially for a girl who just graduated from school. Most of her peers started working as interns, but that wasn't for her. She thought she'd be better if she continued her studies at the university, away from this town. But dreams don't get along with plans always. In order to get into the university, she needed money, that she understood now.

The list of her tasks wasn't that long. With Joyce's help she managed to do everything: to assist customers, manage the shelves, keep the store clean, operate cash register, take inventory, stock, restock and all the other things that were shifted to their shoulders.

She quickly checked the shelves, making sure products were where they were meant to be, moving them in their original place, as kids would often mess things up. After being done with the floor and the counter, she looked around the clean store and finally sighed in relief. She went back to the counter and started packing her things into her bag, already anticipating how Joyce would be happy to see the work she's done here. For Mars, Joyce was such a sweetheart and she would do anything for her, just like for her mother.

Mars opened the drawer to take the keys, when suddenly the soft sound of steps at the entrance made her look up from her seat.

She looked up, and her breath seemed to stutter in her lungs before she let it go.

The blonde guy with the denim jacket stood in front of the entrance and made a step forward. He stood in front of her, comfortably as if he was at his own house. He had no longer his black sunglasses making it easier for her to focus on his icy blue eyes. And he was alone this time. She couldn't chase away the same thoughts that had gone through her mind earlier. _Heartbreaker_. Also new thoughts replaced previous ones, she couldn't tell what it was, if his eyes hinted about it, as if he carried all the pain in the world, his blue eyes told about a lifetime of struggle that could never been put into words. He looked like the person who would rather hurt than being hurt.

"I'll have a pack of Marlboro Reds," he simply said. "Please."

Mars raised her eyebrows in surprise. She clearly remembered how one pack of them was hanging in his breast pocket when he'd walked in earlier. Moreover, she just wiped the floors clean and he made it dirty again by walking over it with his boots. The store was closed.

Or it wasn't. Mars regretted not putting the "closed" sign after cleaning the store and got mad even more.

"Can I see your license?" She simply asked, just in the same tone he talked to her.

The blonde stranger only chuckled clearly loving the situation. He reached to his back pocket and took out the license. He held it between his two fingers showing Mars as she leaned over to check his age only to find out that he was the same age as her. _William Hargrove._

Mars moved her eyes towards his face and then turned around to open the drawer with cigarettes. She searched the packs behind her longer, not wanting to meet his eyes again, that much he intimidated her.

She then turned back and put the right pack in front of him. He gave her an unreadable glance leaning a bit into the counter. "Can I hear your name? Since you know mine."

She had to meet his baby blues again after his question. He put the money on the counter and took one cigarette out of the pack. Not wasting time, he lighted the cigarette and slowly brought it to his lips, his eyes never leaving hers.

"It's Maristela."

"What are you now a goddess or something?" He chuckled.

The name was unique, she agreed. "A star, to be precise. It means "Star of the Sea"."

"Hm." He smoked and Mars just kept staring at him, only seconds later she realised that he was literally smoking in the store and she'd allowed it by not saying anything. It was against the rules.

"No smo-," she recoiled as though she'd woken up from a bad dream when he cut her off, not letting her finish.

"Mars it is then," he said quietly before turning around and heading to the exit.


	2. Ice Creams, Dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you like this chapter!

The day after was Saturday, the first day of Mars's weekend. Surprisingly enough, she didn't have to work this time. After going home the previous night, Joyce had called Mars and told her to enjoy the weekend pointing that she needed some free time to gain more energy and that she herself could've managed everything at the store.

Not knowing how to spend her day yet, Mars pulled a shirt over her head and went to the kitchen. Her father, John Crawford, was sitting at the table near the window, a daily paper and coffee in front of him, as per usual. John would remind you one of those men who could catch everyone's attention in the room by talking about his adventures so passionately, making other men and women sit closer and listen to him with great interest. This factor also helped him to become a history teacher at Mars's school. Luckily for her, he started teaching there after she graduated.

Her mother, Mary Crawford, was standing at the counter, she spread the butter over the toast and covered it with one layer of cottage cheese. There was a joy in how she did it, the smell of warm toasts filling the kitchen. Mary didn't like when Mars skipped the breakfasts, and always made sure to accidentally drop something in her bag for her to eat later at work.

"Morning." Mars didn't have an appetite early in the morning and decided that one glass of water would be enough. For now.

"Oh, how nice of you, young lady, to finally join our breakfast." Mr. Crawford spoke with a hint of sarcasm, moving his newspaper aside. "Mary, I didn't know our kids live with us after all."

Mars smiled turning around and putting the glass on the counter.

Mary put the toasts on the table and sat down. "I think she just took the wrong keys." She played along.

"Today is just my day off." Mars approached her parents, standing between them and crouching to give them both a kiss. "See, now I even want to eat." She said and sat down checking if the teapot was hot before pouring herself a cup of tea.

Her mother sent her a surprised glance and leaned back a bit to share glances with John.

"So, how's the school, dad?" Mars asked, taking a slice of toast and putting some raspberry jam on it.

John continued reading his newspaper, drinking his coffee from time to time.

"The semester is about to end and I feel like I'm talking to myself at the class about the historical discoveries. I have some boys who participated in discussions, but these days they are distracted by the new girl."

"The new girl? By the end of the semester?" She asked.

"Yes. Maxine Mayfield, from California. Her stepbrother picks her up after school. Unpleasant guy." He grimaced at the last sentence.

Mars hummed putting down her cup. "I'm sure there are other kids who would like to participate in your discussions, they are just shy."

"Well, the only historical facts kids want to know about these days are UFO and that is not exatly my cup of tea." He answered not taking his eyes from the paper.

"Mr. Clarke could help them with that." Mars said, taking a bite of the toast and enjoying the sweet taste that filled her mouth.

"Exactly. And that is why they love him more." Her dad answered, she noticed a faint note of sadness in his voice.

Mars looked up, feeling the tiniest bit guilty. She wanted to remember when was the last time she actually talked to him and the first thought that came to her mind was when she'd had a fight with some kids at the primary school, instead of scolding her, he praised her that she'd kicked their asses. Not in front of mom for sure. 

She walked up to him and hugged him tightly. "Oh, dad, I love you." John smiled and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, gently rubbing her arm. "And that is enough."

"I know, I know. As long as you, young lady, show up often at home." He laughed and winked at Mary.

**/ / /**

After the breakfast Mars finally decided that she has to get out of the house so things wouldn't get more emotional. Having agreed to meet with Rose outside the arcade, Mars pinned her hair up and went on to choose an outfit.

She wanted to put on the jeans that she'd left on the chair the day before after work, but her eyes stopped on jean shorts. She loved wearing too many clothes, but with the heat from outside it was impossible.

That is why autumn remained her favourite season. She grabbed the shorts and picked a shirt, of a dusky grey colour with blue "Queen Tour '80" writings on it.

Mars put on her colorful socks and white nikes, and finally left the room, noticing on the way that the house was empty.

She saw Rose at the entrance of The Palace. Rose was in a pink dress with green leafs on it that always reminded Mars about the one she had in childhood. Rose was the only one who would play with Mars at the playground when they were six. And throughout her life they spent more time together, went to the same school and eventually met Nancy. Ever since they have been hanging out together.

However, Nancy was working as an intern now at the Hawkins Post with her boyfriend, Jonathan, and that often restricted them from seeing each other.

"Wow, Ms. Alwaysbusy showed up!" Rose waved with an ice cream in one hand and hugged Mars.

"Shut up, Rose." She hugged her tightly. Rose was lucky, she has been accepted to the university and was going to move to another state by the end of summer.

"Spare me and get me out of this playground." Rose said looking back at the arcade which was already filled with kids. With the arrival of summer, the arcade opened from the early morning. Mars was sure, at this rate they would have to change working hours to 24/7.

Mars walked towards, suddenly stopping in her tracks when she noticed her little sister and some of her classmates among other kids. They gathered around a familiar girl who was playing Dig Dug. And apparently, she was good at it. _Redhead_. She felt even more confused than before and looked away.

"Okay, let's go to Starcourt. At least, I'll have Steve and Robin's ice cream, and not this." Mars pointed at the ice cream Rose was holding.

"Ugh, Steve and his stupid ego are too much for me to handle." Rose took her by the elbow and they walked along the streets laughing.

Once they arrived, they enjoyed some sweets and more ice creams, Mars clearly enjoyed Steve's attempts to joke, i.e. flirt with Rose.

"Now what's on the menu?" Rose asked.

"Me 'n u." Steve put the ice cream bowl on the table and sat down next to Mars and Robin.

"Harrington, I'll throw up if you keep making these jokes."

When the evening came, Rose suddenly suggested going to Nancy's, supposing she'd already be back from work. They spent the whole day shopping and just fooling around, and Nancy's house was closer, about 30 minutes by foot.

"Are you sure about that? We usually planned these things before meeting." Mars furrowed her eyebrows, she wasn't sure if it would be right to go there when Nancy's parents were at home.

Rose shrugged. "I am. Karen Wheeler adores us." If Rose had thought of something, then she was going to do that no matter what, there was nothing in the world that could stop her.

At half past seven they were standing in front of Wheelers' house, but before that they made sure to buy some sweets and beverages for a small sleepover. Mars and Rose stood at the threshold and Mars rang the bell.

Nancy was the one to open the door and though they saw each other recently, Mars noticed some colour brought back to her cheeks, Nancy looked better and it made her happy. After all, it wasn't for everyone to endure what had happened last year. Everything seemed to get back to normal.

"Girls?!" Nancy exclaimed.

"I bet you didn't expect us." Rose casually walked in and hugged her.

"But luckily we brought some food!" Mars showed the bag and joined them.

The rest of the evening went surprisingly fast. They changed into pyjamas that Mars and Rose had bought earlier at the mall and it seemed that they discussed everything that night. Mars missed these sleepovers, mostly because it made her feel a soft joy as it brought back the memories.

Nancy's father was probably sleeping on the couch when Mars went downstairs to get a glass of water. She heard his snoring while walking down the stairs. Nancy and Rose were already sleeping and Mars too was sleepy, but she would have been fully satisfied if she had the glass of water.

She suddenly felt a coldness reaching her bones, making her take a deep breath. Goosebumps ran all over exposed body as she looked up and discovered that the front door was wide open. She blinked a few times, guessing it was all a dream, she pinched her arm realising the door was indeed open and the house was silent.

Mars took a deep breath and stepped forward to close the door. Why was it even open? Did Mrs. Wheeler go for a walk? If not, then she distinctly remembered having closed the door as she'd came in after Rose.

Slowly approaching, she jumped up when she saw the silhouette of a man standing outside the Wheelers' threshold.

He was still wearing his blue jeans and black boots, the only thing that differed from the day before, was his red shirt unbuttoned almost till the last button and dark brown jacket on top of it.

"Hi," he looked her up, a wide smile plastered on his face, "...Mars."

She widened her eyes, staring at his unbothered physiognomy. "William?" She automatically uttered.

"Call me Billy." His gaze didn't hesitate when she met his eyes, and they stared at each other for a few seconds, until she took a step back all of a sudden. She wondered wouldn't have she survived if she didn't come for the damn water.

"What are you doing here?" She asked looking around, trying not to show her hesitation.

"Oh, I'm looking for my sister, Max. Mrs. Wheeler agreed to help me." He told her, his tone sounding completely nonchalant.

"Max? Max Mayfield?" She asked, suddenly all traces of sleepiness leaving her.

"I guess I just found her then."

"No, no, she's not here. I'm just-" She quickly said, but immediately felt agitated when she noticed she couldn't finish the sentence. Luckily, she was interrupted by Karen's voice coming behind her.

"Oh, darling, aren't you cold? It's chilly here." She put her arm around Mars's shoulders.

"Um, yeah, I just came down for a glass of water." She mumbled, not knowing why she felt like explaining herself. "Goodnight." 

She turned around and quickly ran upstairs before they could say anything. Only she heard Billy's faint "Bye" and as she reached the second floor he was thanking Mrs. Wheeler for giving the address of Byers.

When Mars entered the room and closed the door behind her, she approached the window looking at the empty streets, and feeling odd. Somehow she was glad that the conversation with the stranger got interrupted, as she couldn't feel calm near him. After all, the conversation wouldn't have gotten any more interesting and he wouldn't have thought about her anyway, and although she was disappointed a bit for a reason that she didn't get to know more about him, she too wouldn't have thought about him.

After thinking a bit she realised it was too late and it was time for her to try to sleep. Meanwhile, after getting the address and smoking his red Marlboro leaning against his car, in the dim light of streets, Billy Hargrove was looking at her.


End file.
